That 1990s Spirit

Alejandra O'Leary and the Champions of the West

by Patrick Dunn

From the August, 2014 issue

In the 1980s and 1990s, women had more room to be tough on the radio. From Natalie Merchant in 10,000 Maniacs to Suzanne Vega to the Bangles to the Cowboy Junkies, female pop stars maintained the memorable hooks and lighter production touch that marked them as, well, pop stars--but they also wrote open, honest, and raw songs themselves, and delivered those hooks